Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Oppress

Oppress , transitive verb

[French oppresser, Late Latin oppressare, from Latin oppressus, past participle of opprimere; ob (see Ob-) + premere to press. See Press.]

1.
To impose excessive burdens upon; to overload; hence, to treat with unjust rigor or with cruelty. — Wyclif
For thee, oppressèd king, am I cast down. — Shakespeare
Behold the kings of the earth; how they oppress Thy chosen! — Milton
2.
To ravish; to violate. [Obsolete] — Chaucer
3.
To put down; to crush out; to suppress. [Obsolete]
The mutiny he there hastes to oppress. — Shakespeare
4.
To produce a sensation of weight in (some part of the body); as, my lungs are oppressed by the damp air; excess of food oppresses the stomach.